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Grandmother pleads not guilty to conspiracy charge in 3-year-old Oxnard girl's death

The grandmother of a missing Oxnard girl now believed to be dead pleaded not guilty Wednesday to a charge of conspiring to conceal or destroy evidence of the child’s death from authorities.

A defense attorney for Maria De Jesus Lopez, 44, entered the plea during her first Ventura County Superior Court appearance in the criminal case related to her grandchild’s death.

Kimberly Lopez, 3, was reported missing in September 2016 by county social workers. Local detectives and FBI agents began searching for the girl in the U.S. and Mexico. Her parents, Mayra Chavez, 26, and Omar Lopez, 33, have been in Ventura County jail, accused of failing to tell authorities what happened to the girl or where she was.

In January, the girl’s parents were charged with second-degree murder in the girl’s death, which authorities believe happened in their care on June 22, 2015. The parents then drove to Mexico, where they buried her body, authorities said.

On Monday, Kimberly’s grandmother was the latest person to be arrested in connection with her death. Charges were filed against Maria Lopez in June and a judge signed a $200,000 warrant for her arrest, said Senior Deputy District Attorney John Barrick. The prosecutor asked the judge for the bail to remain that high, calling Maria Lopez a “flight risk.”

Chavez, Maria Lopez’s daughter, has pleaded not guilty to charges of second-degree murder, assault on a child causing death and perjury. Omar Lopez initially pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder, perjury and child endangerment but days before a preliminary hearing took a plea deal with the prosecution to testify in Chavez’s trial.

He pleaded guilty to perjury and child endangerment. Barrick said should Kimberly’s father uphold the agreement, the murder charge would be dropped. He is scheduled to be sentenced 9 a.m. Sept. 12 in Courtroom 12.

Barrick said Wednesday that the grandmother was not arrested until Monday because it took time for authorities to locate her. She was ultimately found in Oxnard, he said.

At Wednesday’s arraignment, defense attorney Chad Nichols was appearing on behalf of Maria Lopez for his colleague Ron Bamieh. Nichols entered the plea of not guilty.

Judge Ferdinand “Dino” Inumerable also granted the prosecution’s motion to give Maria Lopez’s defense team some evidence from the child’s missing-person investigation. Barrick said the law required a judge to sign off on that before he could turn it over to the defense.

Kimberly had been removed from her parents’ care twice and placed in foster care. She was returned to her father’s custody in March 2015. That was also when her dependency case was closed and the last time a social worker saw her.

The girl was to be in her father’s care but Chavez was allowed to visit under his or Maria Lopez’s supervision.

At Chavez’s preliminary hearing, a recording of Omar Lopez’s interview with detectives was played in which the girl’s father said he and Chavez went to Maria Lopez’s house after the child died.

Omar Lopez said in the recording that Kimberly hit her head while Chavez was changing the girl’s pants as Kimberly was still standing. The parents did not seek medical treatment and the girl had two seizures, dying within hours, Omar Lopez said in the recording.

According to the complaint filed against Maria Lopez, the child’s grandmother told the girl’s parents to go to Tijuana after learning Kimberly died. She gave them $300 and lent them her PT Cruiser, authorities said.

She lent them her car and gave them money, Omar Lopez said in the recording.

Maria Lopez is due back in court for an early disposition conference at 1:30 p.m. Aug. 21 in Courtroom 12.

Chavez is scheduled to appear in court for jury trial at 9 a.m. Aug. 30 in Courtroom 13.